The Love I Begged For Was Never Real novel Chapter 231

Nora's pupils contracted sharply, and her heart skipped a massive beat.

She fumbled frantically with the screen, desperately trying to kill the audio. Her fingers trembled so violently from the sudden panic that it took several frantic taps before she finally hit the pause button.

The sound cut off abruptly.

This recording was from a few days ago at The Hayes Manor, capturing the moment Giselle had pointed a finger in her face and cursed her out. Nora had impulsively hit record.

The audio clearly documented Giselle's vicious words, exposing the ugly, twisted face of the supposed innocent girl their family coddled so deeply.

She never expected it to accidentally play out loud today, right in front of this man.

Gideon had almost caught her.

"What are you listening to?"

Gideon's voice suddenly rang out right next to her ear. He took a step closer, trying to make out the text on her screen.

"Nothing. Just some work-related voice memos."

Nora steadied her breathing, tilting her head up to meet Gideon's gaze.

She absolutely could not let him discover this recording right now.

Her mind raced. Handing over the recording now wouldn't take Giselle down. Not even close.

Gideon would only twist it with his own biased logic, finding every possible excuse to defend Giselle. He would likely turn it around and accuse Nora of deliberately provoking her, calling her manipulative for secretly recording the conversation.

This recording had to be saved for the most critical moment. It was her trump card to demand a divorce and rip the mask off Giselle's true face once and for all.

Gideon narrowed his eyes, tracking her defensive posture.

"Does a work memo need to be hidden that desperately?"

His voice was low, laced with heavy suspicion.

"I just heard Giselle's voice."

His voice dropped an octave, heavy with warning.

"Unlock the phone and let me see it."

He wasn't brushing off her clumsy excuse. He repeated his demand, holding a hand out, palm up, stopping right in front of her face.

Nora immediately stood up, refusing to back down.

"What? Are you going to audit my personal phone now?"

A mocking smile tugged at the corner of her lips. "This is the Xavier Residence, not The Hayes Manor. I don't need to report the contents of my phone to you. If you're really that paranoid about your precious Giselle, you can call her right now and check her whereabouts. There's no need to stand here breathing down my neck."

Gideon narrowed his eyes. The suspicion in his gaze deepened as he took in her defensive stance.

Nora knew she had to pivot the conversation, and fast. If they kept deadlocking over the audio, he would physically pry the phone from her hands.

"You didn't carve time out of your day to come to my family's house just to dig through my phone, did you?"